Cigar piercer and extractor



July 15, 1958 R. A. LlslEwsKl 2,843,135

CIGAR PIERCER AND EXTRACTOR Filed May 18, 1956 H I N VEN TOR.

United States Patent CIGAR PIERCER AND EXTRACTOR Richard A. Lisiewski, Riverside, N. J. Application May 18, 1956, Serial No. 585,832

3 Claims. (Cl. ISI-255) The present invention relates to a device designed to form a hole in a cigar and extract the tobacco from the hole, `all in a single operation. With the hole in the cigar and the 'excess tobacco extracted, one is enabled to draw more easily upon the cigar while smoking the same.

While some cigars are formed with holes for the purpose of permitting easier drawing, others are not so formed. One preferring to smoke a cigar of a particular make, that is manufactured without the hole, but at the same timev preferring to facilitate drawing upon the cigar, is thus enabled, in 4accordance with the invention, tohave a pocket piercer and extractor which can be used to form a hole in the preferred cigar.

Summarized brielly, the present invention comprises three main components, a barrel, `a head recessed to receive an end of a cigar, and a plunger assembly extending axially within the barrel and head. The plunger assembly is spring biased to a retracted position, but can be shifted to force the same into the cigar end for the purpose of piercing said end. The plunger includes a piercing tube, sharpened to cut through the cigar and to cause the material in the area circumscribed by the tube to pass into the tube. Adjacent the pointed end of the piercing tube, there is provided an inwardly struck tongue, which permits passage of the tobacco into the tube when the tube is being forced into the cigar. When, however, the spring is freed for expansion .and the tube is retracted, the tongue engages the tobacco within the tube to cause the same to be drawn out with the tube, thus leaving a hole or bore in the end of the cigar that is wholly clear of tobacco.

One object of importance is to provide a device as stated which can be manufactured `at low cost, and will be so designed as to be'readily carried in the pocket.

Another object is Vto form the device in such a manner as to accomplish the cigar piercing and extracting functions in a single reciprocating motion of the' plunger assembly.

Another object is to so form the device as to permit it to be Vuse'd on cigars of Vdifferent sizes and shapes.

Still another object is to so design the device asto prevent damage to the cigar when the same is pierced and the tobacco extracted therefrom.

Another object is to facilitate the piercing of the cigar and the extraction of the tobacco, through a for-rn of the device wherein a single depression of the plunger assembly, accomplished easily and speedily, accomplishes the desired result.

Another object is to so form the device that the cigar will be automatically centered therein in position to be pierced.

Yet another object of importance is to provide a device of the nature described wherein the combination piercing tube and extractor can be formed from a single piece of inexpensive tubular material, while still being designed to accomplish sufficiently both the piercing of the cigar and the extraction of-tobacco therefrom.

Still another object of importance is to effect funcice tioning of the device in a manner such that the tobacco will not be forced or compressed about the walls of the hole formed by the piercing tube, the tobacco within the hole being, instead, directed entirely into the tube and being drawn out of the cigar when the tube is retracted.

Other objects will appear from the following description, the claims appended thereto, and from the .annexed drawing, in which like reference characters designate like parts throughout the several views, and wherein:

Figure l is a side elevational view of a cigar piercer and extractor formed according to the present invention;

Figure 2 is an end elevational view thereof as seen from the left of Figure l;

Figure 3 is an end elevational view of the device as seen from the right of Figure l;

Figure 4 is a longitudinal sectional view through the device, a cigar being shown fragmentarily in position to be pierced, the plunger assembly being retracted;

Figure 5 is a longitudinal sectional view wherein the plunger assembly has been forced into the cigar;

Figure 6 is a longitudinal sectional View in which the plunger assembly has been partially retracted following piercing of the cigar and extraction of the tobacco therefrom;

Figure 7 is a transverse sectional view on line 7-7 of Figure 4;

Figure 8 is a fragmentary top plan view of the piercing tube, showing the head end thereof; and

Figure 9 is a fragmentary perspective view of the piercing tube showing the tail or rear end thereof.

Referring to the drawings in detail, the device constituting the present invention can be said to have three main components. These are a barrel generally designated 10, a head generally designated 12, and a plunger assembly generally designated 14.

Considering iirst the formation of the barrel, this, like the remaining components of the device, can be formed of any suitable material such as plastic, metal, etc. The barrel includes an elongated, cylindrical body 16, which can be externally roughened as at 18 at a selected location along its length to provide a finger grip. A nger grip can be provided in another manner, of course, if desired.

The barrel is provided with an end wall at one end, while the other end of the barrel is formed open for connection of a removable head 12 thereto. The head 12 comprises a body portion 2i) flaring slightly toward its outer end, the smaller end of the body portion being integral with a reduced, axial extension 22 externally threaded to engage complementary threads internally provided in the open endportion of the body 16 Vofth'e barrel. In theared'end of the head 'there isiforme'd 1a circular recess 24 Vso shaped `as to receiveone extremity of a cigar C. The recess 24 at its center is in communication with an axial, small-diameter bore 26 extending fully from end to end ofthe head, said boreopening into the bore ofthe barrel, the bore ofthe barrel being substantially greater in diameter than the diameter of the bore 26.

Considering'now the construction of the plunger Vassembly, this includes a plunger element '28 of the cylindrical formation, slidably engaged in Van opening 29 formed in the end wall of the barrel, at the end of the barrel remote from the head 12. The plunger element 28, at its inner end, has a collar 3G defining a shoulder on the plunger adapted to engage said end wall of the -barrel when Vthe plunger is extended to its maximum extent as in Figures l and 4. The collar 30 is in vslidaole Contact withV the wall of the bore of the barrel, Vthus to Vguide the plunger in an axial direction during reciprocating movement-of the "plungerbe'tvveen its "opposite extreme positions shown in Figures 4 and 5 respectively.

The plunger element is closed at its outer end, but is formed open at its inner end, thus to define a sleeve having an axial bore 32 receiving an elongated piercing and extracting tube 34. The piercing and extracting tube is of a length such that when the plunger element 28 is extended to its maximum extent, the head end of the extraction tube will be disposed within the bore 26 of the head 12 (see Figure 4), in closely spaced relation tothe recess 24.

Surrounding the tube 34 is a compression coil spring 36, one end of which vabuts against an outwardly directed circumferential ange or lid 37 provided upon the tail end of the tu-be 34 as shown in Figures 4 and 9. The other end of the spring abuts against the reduced extension 22 of the head. The spring, when free to expand, retracts the tube 34 and the plunger element 28 to the normal position thereof shown in Figure 4, awaiting use of the device.

At its head end, the tube 34 is obliquely cut away or beveled to provide 4a piercing tip 318, and immediately in back of said piercing tip 38, the s-ide wall of the tube is struck inwardly to form a spring tongue 40 extending across the bore of the tube.

`In use of the device, with the parts assembled as in Figure 4, the end of the cigar C is inserted in the recess 24 and will be automatically centered in the head. Then, with the cigar held in the illustrated position, the plunger element 28 is depressed, that is, shifted inwardly of the barrel to the Figure 5 position of said plunger element.

This causes, against the restraint of the spring 36, the piercing tube 26 to be extended beyond the front end of the head 12, into the cigar. The tube penetrates the cigar due to the provis-ion of the pointed tip, to a substantial extent, for the purpose of forming a hole H in the cigar.

When the plunger element has been depressed to its maximum extent, causing formation of the hole to a predetermined, desired depth, the plunger element is released and will be retracted, together with the piercing tube, responsive to expansion of the spring 36. The plunger element and piercing tube are shown almost fully retracted in Figure 6.

lIt may be noted that when the tube is forced into the cigar, the provision of the open, pointed front end of the tube causes the tobacco circumscribed by the tube circnmference to pass into the tube as shown in Figure 5. The spring tongue 40 is highly exible, so as to flex out of its normal position to permit passage of the tobacco into the tube during this stage of the operation.

When, however, the tube has been fully inserted, and

is freed for retraction, as the piercing tube begins to move out of the hole H the spring tongue 40 will be caused to flex back to its normal position, due to the fact that the ytobacco within the tube tends to remain in the cigar. The exure of the tongue 4t) back to its normal position causes said tongue to extend as an abutment preventing the tobacco within the tube from remaining in the hole H and accordingly, as the tube retracts it carries with it the tobacco confined therein.

This leaves a hole H which will be wholly clear of tobacco particles, and further, the arrangement is one that will prevent compression of the tobacco about the side wall of the hole, which compression might tend to affect adversely drawing upon the cigar. Still further, the construction is designed not only to permit the hole to be formed speedily, Abut further, to insure that the hole will be accurately centered in every instance. Another important characteristic of the invention resides in the fact that the device can receive cigars of dilferent sizes and shapes, 'and when not in use, can be easily carried about in ones pocket.

To remove the tobacco from the piercing tube after the device has been used, one need simply detach the head from the barrel. which frees the plunger assembly for removal from the barrel, so that the tobacco may now fall from the open tail end of the piercing tube.

lt is believed apparent that the invention is not necessarily confined to the specic use or uses thereof described above, since it may be utilized for any purpose to which it may be suited. Nor is the invention to be necessarily limited to the specific construction illustrated and described, said construction only being intended to be illustrative of the principles of operation and the means for carrying out said principles, it being considered that the invention comprehends any minor change in construction that may be permitted within the scope of the appended claims.

What is -claimed is:

l. In a cigar piercer and extractor, a piercing tube having at one end a pronounced bevel forming thereat a sharp, open-mouthed piercing tip shiftable axially of a cigar so as to cut out of the cigar and receive a core of tobacco; and an internal, spring-tensioned tongue anchored to the wall of the tube adjacent the tip and normally extending transversely of and within the tube across the longitudinal center line of the tube, said tongue having a free end disposed in close proximity to the wall of the tube at a location angularly spaced degrees circumferentially of the tube from the location at which the tongue is anchored to the Wall thereof, the spring tension being of a value such that said tobacco core, as it enters the tube, will exert pressure against the tongue and will bias the same at least partially out of the path of the tobacco core, said value of the spring tension being at the same time suiliciently great to shift the tongue in a return direction back to its normal position, responsive to a decrease of pressure against the tongue by the core when the tube and cigar are pulled apart following piercing of the cigar.

2. In a cigar piercer and extractor, a piercing tube having an open, sharpened end constituting -a piercing tip shiftable axially of a cigar so as to cutout and receive the core of tobacco, the tube including, adjacent the tip, a tongue struck inwardly out of the material of the tube, the tongue being spring-tensioned to normally extend obliquely across the tube over a major part of the cross sectional area of the tube, the tongue receding in a direction toward its free end from the tip, said tension being selected of a value such that the. tobacco core, as it enters the tube, will exert pressure against the tongue and will bias the same against the tension thereof at least partially out of the path of the core, said value of the spring tension being suiciently great to shift the tongue in a return direction back to its normal position to block the core against retrograde movement out of the tube, responsive to a decrease of pressure against the tongue by the core as the tube and cigar are pulled apart following piercing of the cigar, said tongue being of constant width over its full length and having a squarely formed distal extremity.

3. A cigar piercer and tobacco extractor comprising: Ia barrel formed as an elongated cylinder having an end wall at one end, the other end of the barrel being formed open; a head removably connected to said other end of the barrel, and comprising a body portion flaring slightly in a direction away from the barrel, said head having in the flared end thereof a circular recess shaped to receive an extremity of a cigar, the head having an axial, small-diameter bore extending fully from end to end of the head and open ing into the barrel, said bore communicating with said recess; and a plunger assembly including a cylindrical plunger element, the end wall of the barrel having an opening and the plunger element being slidably engaged in said opening in coaxial alignment with the barrel, said plunger element having an inner end disposed within thc barrel and an outer end disposed exterior-ly of the barrel, the inner end being formed with a collar defining a shoulder on the plunger adapted to engage the end wall of the barrel on axial movement of the plunger in a direction tending to extend the same out of the barrel, said collar being in slidable contact with the wall of the barrel to guide the plunger in an axial direction within the barrel, the plunger at its other end being closed, said plunger assembly further including a piercing and extracting tube one end of which is sharpened and is slidably engaged in said bore of the head, said tube at its other end extending into engagement with the closed, outer end of the plunger, said other end of the tube having an outwardly directed flange bearing against said closed end of the plunger, the tube including adjacent the sharpened end thereof a tongue struck inwardly out of the material of the tube and extendingr transversely across the interior of the tube beyond the longitudinal center line of the tube, said tongue being of a springable material and being normally tensioned to extend obliquely across the tube so as to be deectable by a core of tobacco entering the tube, the spring tension of the tongue being of a value such as to cause the tongue to spring back to its normal position following passage of the core to prevent retrograde movement of the core out of the tube; and a compression, coil spring circum-posed about the tube and bearing at one end against the head, the other end of the spring bearing against said ange of the tube, the spring being tensioned to normally retract the tube within the head and shift the plunger outwardly from the barrel.

References Cited in the ile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 706,679 Mountford Aug. 12, 1902 1,371,948 Szutz Mar. 15, 1921 FOREIGN PATENTS 6,958 Great Britain Mar. 30, 1899 

